The production of large quantities of bakery products, such as cakes, donuts, muffins, pastries, and breads, in wholesale or retail bakeries requires that the products are consistent and essentially identical to meet the expectations of the customers. The bakery products are frequently made from prepared mixes and baked or cooked in a variety of equipment. To ensure the products meet prescribed specifications, they can be measured to characterize selected parameters, such as the size, shape, area, volume, grain size or shape, crust thickness, etc. to ensure that they meet acceptability criteria.
These physical characteristics of bakery products are critical for customer acceptance of the product and also may describe the quality of the product. One current test for round cake volume is known as the "Rapeseed Volume Test". This test involves placing a cake in a chamber, closing the chamber, inverting the measurement device to permit rapeseeds to surround the cake in the chamber and then measuring the displacement of the cake on a scale. The cake volume is an important measure which can be related to quality of the baked item. However, the Rapeseed Volume Test has been shown to have wide variability. It is difficult to obtain consistent results, particularly with different operators, as the test is particularly technique dependent.
Other tests involve size measurements with a ruler which can be time consuming and lack precision. The height/spread test currently practiced for muffins consists of placing three muffins on a ruler, peak side up, and measuring the spread. Then the muffins are turned on their side and the height of the three muffins is measured. Shape is described.
Grain development in a cake is related to eating characteristics and is often measured by observation and descriptive terms, e.g., tight, open, closed, tunnels, tornados, etc. A definitive numerical measurement would permit a greater and clearer definition of the grain structure of baked items.
Computer imaging is believed to have many advantages in measuring attributes of baked products. A camera image can be analyzed by computer software and measurements compared to preselected criteria. The measured attributes of bakery products can be used to define the quality of the item. It is proposed that the methods described herein can be used as a quality assurance tool on bakery products to ensure uniformity, consistency and provide accurate and precise measurements. These methods can also be used to provide objective measurements of bakery product characteristics, such as grain size and shape, instead of the subjective descriptors currently used.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent as the description proceeds.